How to Sell Things and Still Sleep at Night

“Oh if you like that, you should totally watch Star Trek: Deep Space Nine”, said my mastermind buddy.

I wasn’t feeling it — I mean I like Star Trek just fine, but it never impacted me as much as some other scifi shows and films.

He went on: “I really like it as a show because it’s kind of the forgotten stepson of the franchise and it’s the deepest one. Really interesting commentary on occupation, religious freedom, and racism”.

With that, I was sold. Must give it a try.

And I joked: “You should be in sales”.

Here’s why this matters, if you own or run a business.

Because if you have one, you need to sell your work or products.

Without sales, you don’t have a business.

But most people have hangups about selling.

Limiting beliefs, erroneous views, and of course the bad taste we have in our mouths, seeing how sleezy and corrupt and unethical sales can get, if it’s the wrong person doing it.

1: Be real. If you’re not enthusiastic about what you’re selling, you should not fake it, but find either a different product or a different market.

2: Care about the other person and their needs. If someone buys something, it’s because they want their life to improve, in whatever way. To be effective at selling — I mean, transferring enthusiasm — you’ve got to actually care about them.

3: Listen — not for the cue on what you’re going to say next, but really, truly, listen to what’s going on in the other person’s mind and emotions.

4: Once you ‘get’ what’s going on for them, make sure that your reply is tailored to join the conversation that’s going on in their minds.

5: Ask for a decision. Note that this is different from pushing people into one.

6: Accept ‘no’ with grace and gratitude. The person who says no has just freed you up from a conversation that won’t lead anywhere good for you or them.

That’s something to be grateful for — you get to move on with your life, and they too.

You now have more time to seek other potential candidates, and have conversations with them.

Bonus: you get to sleep at night, because you know you’ve operated with ethics and true human concern.

Do you want to get really, really good at having those kinds of conversations, and become really good at ‘selling’?